Storms in US South kill at least 10, head to Northeast

Storms producing tornadoes and heavy
rains rolled through parts of the southern United States, killing at least nine people and leaving over 1 million
without power, authorities said.

The National Weather Service said the powerful storm had
mostly left the South by late Friday and was moving to the
Northeast, where it was forecast to cause heavy snow and sleet
from southeastern Michigan east to New York state. 

Parts of
central New York and southern New England may see over a foot
(30 cm) of snow by Saturday afternoon.

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said on social media that at
least three people were killed in the severe weather, though he
did not provide any more details. A fourth person was killed by
the storm Kentucky, a woman who died when a tree fell on the car
she was in, the Fayette County coroner’s office said.

Aside from the tornadoes, Beshear said thunderstorms in
Kentucky were generating winds of 80 miles per hour (128.75
kph), which are “strong enough to blow tractor trailers off the
road.”

Three people were killed by falling trees in Alabama as severe weather swept through the state. In Mississippi, a woman died inside her SUV after a rotted tree branch struck her vehicle, and in Arkansas a man drowned after he drove into high floodwaters. News outlets reported two people died in Tennessee when trees fell on them.

READ MORE: Biden to end US Covid-19 emergencies on May 11

1.4 million homes, businesses without power

In Arkansas, a man died when he was swept into a swollen
river by flood waters after driving on a flooded street,
according to the Scott County Sheriff’s Department.

In Mississippi, Governor Tate Reeves said on social media on
Friday that overnight storms producing high winds had resulted
in one person’s death, though he gave no more details.

More than 1.4 million homes and businesses were without
power in states impacted by the storm, according to data from
PowerOutage.us.

Violent storms are frequent in the southern United States in winter months, as warm, moist air comes up from the Gulf of Mexico and collides with colder air moving down from the north, meteorologists say.

READ MORE: California says mountain residents could remain stranded in snow for week